Loading apparatus for ordnance.



A. T. DAWSON AND T. BUCKHAM.

LOADING APPARATUS FOR ORDNANCE. APPLICATION FILED MAY15.I9$5.

Patented May 6, 1919.

STATES PATENT OFFICE.

' ARTHUR TaEvon'nAwsoN AND-GEORGE THOMAS ='BUGKHA1VI,'OF wE'sTMms-TEE, Lennon, ENGLAND, .ASSIGNORS To vIcK'EEs LIMITED, or WESTMINSTER,

' L NDON, ENGLAND.

Q .LOADING- APPARATUS FOR ORDNANCE.

' I .To all whomz't may concern:

1'". Beit known that we, Sir ARTHUR TREVOR Dawson, knight, and GEORGE THOMAS BUCK- HAM, both subjects of the King of Great Britain, 'residin'g at Vickers House, Broadway, Westminster, in the county of London,

,England,have invented certain new and useunpr0vementsin'or Relating to Loading I Apparatus for Ordnance, 'of which the fol- This inventionrelates to apparatus of the kind in which the ammunition is loaded into lowing .is a specification.

the gun from a tray which when in the loading position is immediately behind the breech at a distance therefrom greater'than the maximum length of recoil and of the kind in which a movable guide is provided for bridging the gap between the front edge of'theloading *tray and the breech end of the gun and thereby guiding the projectile and the powder charge 'or cartridge [case from the loading tray to the gun. The invention "is particularly applicable :to gun mountings in which the gun is situated at a considerable distance above its magazine,

the ammunition being raised bya hoist having a loading tray by which the ammunit on is I preferably carried during the hoisting operation so that it can be transferred directly therefrom into the gun. According to this invention we provide a pivoted guide so constructed and arranged that the cooperation therewith of the nose of the projectile during its movement from the loading tray in a forward direction to feed it into the gun displaces the guide about its pivot into a position to bridge the v gap between the tray and the breech end of the gun. When the ammunition has been loaded into the gun the guide automatically resumes its original position and the front portion of the guide is then situated immediately in front of and across the loading tray so that the nose of the projectile during the next loading operation again effects the aforesaid movement of the guide into its bridging position.

en the gun with which the guide is employed is one workin on the semi-automatic principle a pro ection on the guide acts as a bulfer to prevent the cartridge case from being brought into violent contact with the ammunition on the tray during the ejection of the case on the run out movement Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May'fi, 1919.

Application filed May 15, 1915. 'Seria1'No.2'8,40.

after the gun has been loaded but before it has been fired. v

In order that the said inventionfmay be clearly understood and readily carried'i'nto effect, we will'describe the same more fully with reference to the -accompanying'draw *ings, in which Figure 1 isaside el'evation showing more or less diagrammatically a constructional -form of the pivoted guide in-the position it assumes before the projectile and cartridge case are loaded into the gun, and

Fig. 2 is a similar view-showing the pivoted guide displaced to bridge the gap between the loading tray and the breech end of the gun. 1 I

A is the breech'end of the gun and B "the loading tray. 0 represents the pivoted guide which, in the example shown, is pivoted at c to' a bracket B carried by the loading tray;- This pivoted guide is so constructed that when moved to lie in line with the loading tray' (Fig. 2') the weight of "the portion at the rear of its pivot c is greater than that in frontof the pivot so that when the ammunition has been moved from the guide into the gun the said guide will return to the position shown by Fig. 1. In order to better insure this movement of the guide, it may be controlled by a spring which is preferably of the torsion type acting upon the pivot c. The alinement of the guide with the loading tray when the former is in the position shown in Fig. 2 is insured by the cooperation of the rear part of the guide with the bracket B.

C represents the aforesaid projection on the guide C, this projection, when the guide is in the position shown by Fig. 1, serving as a buffer to prevent the ejected cartridge from coming into violent contact with ammunition that may be on the loading tray.

What we claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is 1. In ammunition loading apparatus for ordnance, the combination of a projectile tray arranged some distance behind the breech end of the gun and a pivoted guide member for bridging the gap between the tray and the breech end of the gun, said guide member normally occupying a posi- 7 tion across the forward end of the tray and being rocked about its pivot to assume its guiding position by the nose of the projectile when the latter is being moved into the gun.

2. In ammunition loading apparatus for ordnance, the combination of a projectile tray arranged some distance behind the breech end of the gun and a guide member" pivoted to said tray and serving to bridge the gap between the tray and the breech end ,ofthe gun, said guide member-normally occupying a position across the forward end of the tray and being rocked about its pivot to assume its guiding position bythe nose of the projectile when thewlatter is being 7 moved into the gun.

- 3. In ammunition loading apparatus for ordnance, the combination of a projectile tray arranged some distance behind .the breech end of. the gun and a transversely pivoted guide member for brid ing the gap betweenthe tray and the 'breec hnd of the gun, said guide member normally occupying a position across the forward end of the tray and being rocked about its pivot to assume its guiding position by thenose of the projectile when the'latter is being moved into the 4:. In ammunition loading apparatus for ordnance, the combination of a projectile tray arranged some distance behind the breech end of the gun and a guide member transverselypivoted to said tray and serving to bridge the gap between the tray and, the breech end of the gun, said guide member normally occupying a position across the forward end of the tray and being rocked Copies of this patent may be obtained for about its pivot to assume its guiding position by the nose of the projectile when the latter is being moved'in-to the gun; r f I 1 5. 111 ammunition loading apparatus for ordnance, the combinationof a' proj ectile tray arranged some distance behind the breech end of the gun, a pivoted guide member normally occupying a position across the forward end of said tray and serving when displacedto bridge the gap between the tray I breech end of the gun, a guide memberrpivotedto said tray and serving to bridge the gaplbetweenthe tray and the breech end of the gun, said guide: member normally occupying a position across the forward end of vthe tray and being rocked about its pivot to assume its guiding position by the nose of the projectile when the latter isbeing moved into the gun, and a bufi'er member .on said guide member for ejected cartridge cases.

projectile has been;

In testimony whereof ,we aflixuour signa- "tures in the presence of two witnesses;

' ARTHUR TREVOR DAWSON." GEORGETHOMAS BU Witnesses:

, V HENRY KING,

J No; R. CASWELL.

five cents eaoh 'by addressingfthe Commissioner of 'l'atentl,

Washin :ton, D. G. 

